Long Gone and Moved On
by HaydenFan1981
Summary: Adia is an Army brat who's life was turned upside down when she was 15. A chance meeting with Hayden Christensen leads to an unusual friendship. Will this friendship turn into something more and can Hayden help her move on?
1. Chapter 1

**December 25, 1996 Newport News, Virginia**

"Adia, wake up. Get your things together."

It was 3 am and I was only 15 years old, but this is the day that changed my life forever. My mother was a secretary at a dental office and my father was a Sergeant in the Army, so you could say that I was an Army brat. By the time I was 15, I had lived in 17 different places: Germany, Korea, the Netherlands, Colorado, Kentucky, Texas, etc., and my mother was about to add one to the list.

"What's going on?" I asked, wiping the sleep out of my eyes.

"Just get your stuff," she answered shortly.

"How much of it?"

"All of it," she responded sharply.

Through years of moving from place to place, my "things" consisted of clothes, a pair of shoes, a hair brush, deodorant and a doll that I'd had since I was 2 - I'd managed to keep it despite losing things when we moved. All of my possessions fit into a duffle bag that was no bigger than the size of a single dresser drawer. I walked into the living room to find my mother shoving things into boxes. My two sisters were already in the car, and as I helped my mom put the last of the boxes in the car, I looked up at her bedroom window and saw my dad staring down at us. I told her I forgot something and ran back into the house, up the stairs, and into my parents' bedroom.

"Daddy," I said "what's going on?"

He didn't say a word, just hugged me, and then walked out of the room. That was the last time I saw my dad. 22 hours later we were in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

**Present Day Toronto, Ontario, Canada**

"I can't come in earlier, Sam. You know that," I sighed.

"Well, I need someone to fill the shift," he said.

"Then get somebody else. When you hired me I told you that I could only work a fixed schedule: 8 pm to 5 am."

"I need you at 4 pm. That's the end of this discussion," he said walking off.

"You're right. It is the end of the discussion," I argued, "because I quit."

"You're home early," Jessica said, looking at the clock on the wall as I closed the door behind me.

"Yeah," I said slowly. "Thanks for staying with them, again."

"Anytime. They're angels," she smiled, grabbing her purse.

"That's because they're sleeping," I joked.

"Do you need anything before I go?" she asked, heading slowly towards the door.

"No, thanks. Go home and get some sleep," I smiled.

"It's 4 am," she pointed out.

"Right, then go see Jesse."

She grinned and walked out the door. Jessica is my best friend, and I honestly don't know what I'd do without her. She watches the girls for me when the sitter cancels. Jesse is Jessica's boyfriend. He's a firefighter, and when she watches the girls she goes up to the station to see him once I get home. The girls go to sleep at 7:30 and wake up at about 6; I work 8-5 so that I'm there when they go to bed and I'm there when they wake up. I was blessed to find a cafe that's open 24 hours that would hire me for such strange hours. Now I don't know what I'm going to do. I sat down on the couch and turned on the TV. After flipping channels for about five minutes, I decided to take a shower in an attempt to wash this horrible night off of me. When I got out and got dressed, I went into my bedroom and sat down on my bed.

_I have to go look for another job tomorrow_, I thought to myself. _I can't afford to be without a job_. After mulling over where I could possibly apply, I grabbed my phone and dialed Jessica's number.

"Hello, hello," she said, and I could tell she was smiling.

"Hey, what're you doing tomorrow?" I asked.

"Nothing, why?"

"I need you to help me with something."


	2. Chapter 2

"Ok, girls, wait out here with Jessica," I said, and they sat down on a bench outside the cafe.

"Breathe," Jessica reminded me. "You're just filling out an application."

"You're right," I nodded, "and thanks."

I walked inside and took a brief look around at the people inside: business men on their lunch break, girls in their mid-twenties who appeared to be gossiping about another group of girls, moms with their children, and one semi-shady looking guy at the counter. I walked up there and stood in front of the waitress, who was standing one stool away from the man, on the opposite side of the counter.

"What can I get'cha?" she asked quickly.

"An application?" I said, waiting for her to laugh in my face or tell me to get lost.

"Here ya go," she said sliding it to me.

As I filled out the application, I couldn't help but feel as if I was being watched. I turned around and looked out the window - Jessica was staring a hole through me, making weird faces and mouthing something that I couldn't make out. I rolled my eyes and turned back around. Still, I couldn't shake the feeling that I was being watched, and while I knew that Jessica was still staring at me, she wasn't the reason I had the feeling. I casually glanced around, until my eyes finally stopped on the man at the counter. He had on a baseball cap and sunglasses - inside - but despite the glasses, I could see that he was looking at me. I ignored it and continued to fill out my application, more quickly than I had been, though.

"You done?" the waitress asked as I put the lid back on my pen.

"Yes," I responded, handing it to her.

"Can I get you anything else?" she asked, as the man at the counter left.

"No, thankyou," I smiled, getting up from the counter.

"How'd it go?" Jessica asked me when I got outside.

"How did filling out an application go? It went fine," I teased. "What were you trying to say to me?"

"Oh, I was just trying to screw with you," she laughed. "So was this the last place on the list?"

"Yeah. There aren't any other places that are open 24/7," I sighed.

"So, you don't need me anymore?" she asked.

"No, you can go see Jesse...again," I laughed. "I'm just gonna take the girls for a walk through the park and maybe get them some ice cream."

"Alright, I'll see you later then," she said, hugging me and then walking off.

I walked across the street with the girls and sat on a bench, watching them as they played on the playground. My phone vibrated, and I looked down to read the text that Jessica had just sent me: goin out w/ Jesse 2nite. think hes gna ask me. I shot her a quick no way reply, and when I looked back up, there was no sign of the girls. Panic ran through my body and I jumped up off of the bench.

"Anabelle! Arabelle!" I called their names, once, twice, a hundred times. "Anabelle, Arabelle!" I continued to yell, my eyes preparing to fill with tears, my mind racing, imagining the possibilities of what could have happened to them.

"Mommy," I heard Anabelle say.

I whirled around, my heart racing, and laid eyes on my twin girls; accompanying them was the man that had been at the cafe. I dropped to my knees and hugged them both tightly, my body shaking and my voice lost.

"What did I tell you about running off?" I asked them both once I'd found my voice again.

"We're sorry," Arabelle said, rocking back and forth.

"Why did you run off?" I asked them.

"There was a squirrel," Anabelle said excitedly.

I couldn't help but laugh at their excitement over a squirrel, and at that moment I realized that I'd forgotten to say anything to the man that brought them back to me.

"Thank you so much," I said to him after I stood up.

"It's no problem," he smiled. "How old are they?"

"They're 3," I said, forcing myself to ignore how cute his smile was.

"I'm older," Anabelle butted in.

"Yes, by two whole minutes," I said, with a sarcasm in my voice that only an adult would understand.

"They're beautiful girls," he smiled again.

"Thank you," I smiled as well, "I'm Adia," I said sticking my hand out.

"Hayden," he said, meeting my hand and shaking it, with a grasp that I could tell was being modified as to not squeeze my hand too hard.

"Well, Hayden," I smiled, "thank you again."

"It's really no problem," he insisted, looking down at the girls.

"You say that, but I don't know what I would have done if you hadn't found them. I was gonna take the girls to get some ice cream. Let me get you something," I said, the look on my face and the tone of my voice telling him that I wouldn't take no for an answer.

"Alright," he gave in.

We walked to the ice cream parlor, the twins walking in front of me so I could keep an eye on them.

"So," Hayden started, "what does Adia mean?" he asked.

"How do you know it means something?" I asked in response.

"Well, it just seems like one of those names that has to mean something," he shrugged.

"I love your logic," I teased. "In one language it means "being a gift" and in another it means "postpones"."

"And which translation were your parents going for?"

"I'm not sure," I laughed. "My aunt said it's because I was late and because I was born on the day she was supposed to get married I postponed her wedding," I laughed again, "but my daddy always said I was his gift from God."

"That must be the one then," he said as we walked into the parlor.

I ordered both the girls a small vanilla cone and I ordered a medium cookie dough.

"What do you want?" I asked, turning to Hayden.

"A medium chocolate," he smiled.

While we waited for our order to be ready, I handed napkins to the girls and set them down at a table. I walked back over to the counter, where Hayden was holding two small vanilla cones, and handed them to the girls. Before I could get back to the counter to hand the woman my credit card, Hayden had already handed her his and she was swiping it through the machine.

"Um," I said, "what are you doing?"

"What do you mean?" he asked, amusement in his voice.

"You know what I mean," I rolled my eyes, "I'm supposed to be paying you back."

"Aah, but I already told you that isn't necessary," he smirked.

"You're impossible," I sighed, deciding to give up on the subject - for the moment.

"So, what do you do?" he asked me after we'd sat down at the table. "Well, I should say what _did_ you do, being that you were filling out an application."

"I was a waitress," I said. "That's really the only job I could find that would hire me for the odd hours that I need to work. Other than the hospital, that is, but I'm definitely not qualified to work there."

"What kind of hours do you need?" he asked casually.

"8 pm to 5 am."

"That's really specific," he laughed.

"Yeah, well I have to be there when the girls go to sleep and when they wake up," I said cleaning ice cream off of Arabelle's face.

He nodded and we finished our ice cream in silence. The girls started getting restless, and I realized that I had kept them out all day, dragging them around from place to place.

"I really should get the girls home," I said as we walked outside, "I've had them out all day. I know they've got to be getting tired."

"Alright," he nodded. "How far from here do you live?"

"About ten minutes," I answered.

"I'll give you a ride," he said, "I can't let you walk all that way."

"No, it's fine, really. I enjoy it," I insisted.

_A/N: Reviews are appreciated!_


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